Title: The Raj - India and the British 1600 - 1947
By C. A. Bayly
ISBN: 1-85514-026-8
The book covers these centuries through pictures taken from old museums & collector’s archives and gives history behind those pictures. It is a colorful exhibition of India that covers all aspects of life. There are political pictures, like pictures of Kings, Queens, Generals & Maharajas, pictures of artifacts, like the sword of Aurangzeb, or a toy from 1700s, a picture depicting a village scene from south India & the busy market of Bombay to the gates of Lahore. What did the farmers used to wear in Bengal and a shop keeper would wear in Delhi. What kind of clothes were common among the rich women with all the different embroidery.
As the pictures are with some relevant short commentary & tidbits of history it takes the reader through the centuries on how the Mughals lost control, how the British took over and at the same time looks at the life of ordinary citizens.
Definitely a collector’s choice that is best used as a reference, but if you just want to look at it you can probably find it in your library. The size is about 6 x 11 and has about 450 pages - pretty heavy, I must say.